March 7, 2016
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IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa’s Student-Athlete Academic Services has recognized junior Mollie Drenth and senior Matt Loochtan as February’s male and female Student-Athletes of the Month.
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Voted on by their peers, this honor recognizes those student-athletes who have excelled not only in their sport, but in the classroom as well.
Ranked 20th nationally in the all-around, Drenth has won seven consecutive all-around titles for the Hawkeyes, leading Iowa to a 5-2 record in February, which includes upset wins over No. 25 Ohio State, No. 14 Nebraska, and No. 21 Illinois. Drenth is a big reason why the Hawkeyes are ranked 17th in the country — Iowa’s best ranking since the 2011 season.
Undefeated in Big Ten competition this season with eight individual titles, Drenth ranks 12th nationally and third in the conference on beam. On Feb. 6, Drenth recorded career bests in vault (9.850), beam (9.925), and all-around (39.475) to lead Iowa to its first win over Nebraska in 17 years. Drenth’s scores on beam and in all-around are the best of any Hawkeye in 2016.
Drenth, a native of Riverview, Florida, is majoring in health and human physiology and has participated in numerous volunteer service events.
Loochtan, a team-elected co-captain, was named to the Big Ten Gymnasts to Watch List in the preseason. He has guided the Hawkeyes to a tri-meet title and has earned seven titles individually this season. Loochtan holds Iowa’s school record on floor exercise and earned All-America honors on rings in 2014.
The Hawthorn Woods, Illinois, native was named Big Ten Gymnast of the Week on Feb. 29 after guiding Iowa to a win over No. 6 Nebraska and No. 8 Penn State on February 27. Loochtan earned five event titles on floor (15.350), rings (15.150), vault (14.450), parallel bars (14.850) and high bar (14.450) to help the Hawkeyes finish atop the leaderboard. His all-around score of 86.400 was a career-high.
Loochtan is a finance major.
